Description
Jeff Davis County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 census, its population was 2,342. Its county seat is Fort Davis. The county is named for Jefferson Davis, who served as the 23rd United States Secretary of War in the 1850s, and as President of the Confederate States of America.
The legislature established Jeff Davis County on March 15, 1887. Fort Davis was named as the county seat.[10] Cattle ranchers began operating in the county in the 1880s. The towns of Valentine and Chispa became supply centers for the ranchers and were later designated as railroad stops as railway construction entered the area.
Fort Davis has always been the county's largest town. By 1970, Madera Springs was known as the smallest town in Texas. Davis Mountains State Park opened to the public in the 1930s, improved during the Great Depression.
Fort Davis National Historic Site was established in 1961. The Chihuahuan Desert Research Institutearboretum was established in 1974.